This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Balance shafts have the purpose of balancing the forces of inertia and/or moments of inertia arising in internal combustion engines (so-called mass balancing). With specific engine types, for example with in-line engines having four cylinders, such balance shafts are used pair-wise, with the balance shafts rotating in opposite directions at twice the crankshaft speed. The balance shafts as well as the components supporting them are subject to high load due to the high speed so that the stability of balance shaft units is of great importance.
Balance shaft units having a housing and such balance shafts or balance shaft pairs are generally known. Known balance shaft units which withstand the high loads and nevertheless reliably compensate the forces of inertia and moments of inertia which occur are, however, undesirably complex and/or expensive to manufacture and/or have a large number of components to be assembled.
To take account of the increasing pressure on costs and the constantly growing limitation on the available construction space in the area of the engine, attempts are being made to integrate further assemblies into known balance shaft units to operate them together with the balance shafts. Oil pumps are frequently integrated into balance shaft units. Conventional oil pump balance shaft modules, however, have an even larger number of components and are therefore very labor-intensive in assembly.